Family

I'll never forget a discussion I had with the owner of a women's consignment shop in Longwood, Florida, many years ago. I'd shopped there since I was a teenager who needed a week's worth of "professional attire" for a leadership forum in high school... and when we had this discussion, I was a college student embarking on my student teaching... She asked what my plans were, and when I told her that I planned to move to Georgia and get a teaching job in Atlanta, she said the following: "It may seem fun to live far away and on your own now, but you'll move back when you have kids."

I've thought a lot about her comment over the years. When I was dating Chas and we moved in together... one step further from "moving back". When I had Abby... another step. When we bought our home... another step. When Chas got his job at CNN... another step. I enjoy living where we do, and love my life here. I have no immediate plans to move, and even if we did, it's extremely unlikely that it would be to Florida.
Believe it or not, the thing that is making it harder for me to be far away is not the fact that I have two young children and my mom is in another state- it's the other end of the spectrum, actually. The fact that my grandma and grandpa are not doing well... that one of them is in the hospital- with no immediate plans of release- and the other is settling into an assisted living facility- it breaks my heart. Last weekend, I was able to visit. They're OK. They're being taken care of. But I wish I could be there. I love them both with all my heart and would be by their sides if I could. I'm glad I was there recently and told them how I feel, because if they ever doubted my love, it would kill me.